Daddio

In the age of proliferating rideshare options, evidently taxis are still a thing. As Daddio reveals, it’s also still a prime setting for oversharing between complete strangers.

Volleying its extended conversation between the front and back seats, this two-hander subtly explores trust, privacy, and personal boundaries among two troubled souls to need an ear.

However, as it unfolds mostly in real time, the film struggles to build consistent tension or urgency. In other words, while the car keeps rolling, the narrative momentum stalls.

It begins with a cab driver named Clark (Sean Penn) picking up an unnamed young woman (Dakota Johnson) for a late-night ride from JFK airport. He’s a gabber, and breaks the ice with some innocuous small talk as they gradually develop a playful if awkward rapport.

It turns out she’s a technology programmer coming home after a tense visit with her fractured family in Oklahoma, and she’s involved in an affair with an older man who’s sexting her and anxious for a visit. Her life is at something of a crossroads.

Clark guesses most of this with minimal prodding, and she opens up to his good-natured sarcasm, which seems more well-intentioned than intrusive. But he’s got issues of his own.

Beneath his brash and vulgar exterior, he’s sensitive, perceptive, and even charming — even as his rants about technology and millennials seem curmudgeonly. “It’s nice that you’re not on your phone,” he shares.

The most effective moments involve quiet contemplation, especially for the conflicted woman. As the conversation turns more personal and finds another gear, deeper relationship insight remains elusive.

Still, the film captures the uniquely intimate and slightly unsettling dynamic between driver and passenger. That’s due primarily to the chemistry between Johnson and Penn — each fully committed in their portrayal — which feels more genuine than manufactured.

Enhanced some stylish visual flourishes that incorporate the city’s nightscape, the screenplay by rookie director Christy Hall struggles to generate sufficient incentive for emotional investment in the characters.

The journey — which finds an unhurried rhythm without grinding to a halt — winds up more cathartic and transformative for them than for moviegoers. Yet like a vehicle stuck in New York gridlock, Daddio only sporadically gets up to full speed.

Rated R, 101 minutes.